Velocis Sells Houston Office Campus

By IvyLee Rosario

Echo Lane, Houston

Velocis has sold Echo Lane, a Class A office campus in Houston’s Hedwig Village, to 800 Builders. The firm purchased the property back in September 2012 from CBRE Global Investors, for $26 million. 

Located at 950 and 952 Echo Lane, the three- and four-story campus comprises two buildings totaling 189,162 square feet. Built in two phases between 1982 and 1984, the asset features common area Wi-Fi, 578 parking spaces, a fitness center, stained-glass ceiling atrium, four-story marble staircase and major street exposure to Interstate 10 and Katy Freeway. Occupancy was raised from 83 percent when bought to 97 percent now when sold. Some major tenants include Regus, Echo Energy, Synergy Wealth Management, Givens & Johnston, Robertson Insurance Services and B+R Partners. According to Yardi Matrix, there are still seven spaces available to lease within the complex. 

“When we purchased Echo Lane, we saw a great opportunity to invest in a property with not only a premier address, but also unique characteristics,” said Mike Lewis, partner at Velocis, in a prepared statement. “As with all of our investments, our goal was to identify and unlock value in the property. With Echo Lane, our understanding of the local market, along with some patience and restraint, played a major role in our ability to increase occupancy and raise rental rates with minimal investment, and ultimately, dispose of the asset at the optimal time.”

JLL’s Senior Vice President Kevin McConn, Vice President Rick Goings and Managing Director Rudy Hubbard, represented Velocis in the transaction. 

Last October, Velocis purchased Two Sugar Creek, another office property in a submarket of Houston. The asset was sold by TA Associates Realty and comprises 143,410 square feet in Sugar Land. 

Image courtesy of Yardi Matrix